![]() If there is a significant delay in the passage of stools then a greater amount of bilirubin will enter the circulation and add to bilirubin levels.ĭuring pregnancy while the baby is developing in the uterus the liver is assisted in its functions by the placenta, including the processing of the bilirubin. Some of the bilirubin in the bile in the intestine is normally re-absorbed. Eventually it will reach a level where it is deposited in the skin where it will cause the yellow colour. If the load becomes too great, or the processes within the liver slow down, or there is some obstruction to the outflow of the bile from the liver, then bilirubin will accumulate in the blood. Normally, the liver can cope with this bilirubin load. This means that the newborn baby will in fact have a relatively increased load of bilirubin to clear. After birth, when babies start to breathe and use their lungs, these extra cells are no longer needed and are broken down. In the uterus the baby has a large number of extra red cells to help transport oxygen from the placenta to the baby. The haemoglobin released is converted to bilirubin and carried to the liver where it is further processed and excreted in the bile. Normally red blood cells survive in the circulation for about 120 days before they are removed and broken down by the body. It is not so much the jaundice but rather the reason for the jaundice that is important. Another, fortunately rare, reason is hepatitis caused by either a viral or bacterial infection. Some are the result of disease causing excess breakdown (haemolysis) of the baby’s red blood cells such as “haemolytic disease of the newborn”. Most of the cases are not serious and are basically due to immature liver function. It usually only lasts for about 10 to 14 days and no treatment is required. Jaundice is the name given to the yellowish discoloration of the skin and eyes by bilirubin that occurs in about 50 – 80 % of newborn babies (depending whether term or preterm respectively).
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